Drivers who cause death while using a phone at the wheel should face tougher penalties, Theresa May has said, as she announced a new consultation on dangerous driving offences.

The Prime Minister said the practice should be as "socially unacceptable" as drink driving and emphasised the role that friends and family can play in stopping people from using their mobiles.

It came as the government announced that motorists caught on their phones will face double the current punishment of a £100 fine and three points on their driving licence.

Just as we have made it socially unacceptable to drink and drive, so we need to do the same with using a mobile phone while drivingTheresa May

From early next year anyone found calling, texting or using an app while driving will face a £200 on-the-spot fine and six points on their licence.

It means that new drivers – who can lose a maximum of six points before being banned for the first two years after passing their test– will face an immediate ban.

Previously they were able to avoid getting points on their licence by taking part in retraining courses.

Watch | Lorry driver uses mobile phone before crashing and killing family of four

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Speaking as her trip to India concluded yesterday Mrs May vowed to work with the public to raise awareness of the problem in the same way that a campaign against drink-driving has successfully changed the way people think about getting drunk and getting in the car.

It follows a tragic incident in which Polish lorry driver Tomasz Kroker killed four members of the same family after failing to stop while scrolling through music on his phone.

Research by the RAC has found illegal use of mobile phones by drivers is on the increase with almost a third admitting to using a hand-held device compared to 8 per cent in 2014.

Theresa May watches a flypast by the Indian Air Force with schoolchildren in BangaloreCredit:
PA/Stefan Rousseau

Mrs May said: "Sadly we have seen too many times the devastating and heart-breaking consequences of using a mobile phone while driving. A moment’s distraction can wreck the lives of others forever.

“We are determined to make our roads safer by taking action against those who flout the law and put other people at risk. That’s why we are doubling the penalties for using a mobile while driving, with tougher measures due to take effect next year.

“We will also launch a consultation on dangerous driving offences by the end of the year. The sentence should fit the crime for those who kill or seriously injure on our roads and it should deter other drivers from causing needless harm just for the sake of taking a call or sending a text."

She added: “Ultimately though, we need to work with the public to raise awareness of the dangers of using a mobile phone when driving.

"Just as we have made it socially unacceptable to drink and drive, so we need to do the same with using a mobile phone while driving.

A motorist on his phone

"We need people to realise the tragedy they can inflict in a fleeting moment and stop people using a mobile when their eyes and mind should be on the road and their hands on the wheel.”

The intervention follows a warning from the RAC that use of mobile phones behind the wheel is at "epidemic proportions" because people do not believe they will be caught by the Police.

According to research the proportion of people who think it is acceptable to take a short phone call while driving has doubled in the last two years.